In the US, Mitsubishi uses such phrases as "Wake up and Drive" and "Best Backed Cars in the World" to try and sell cars. A scan through the US site throws up some interesting cars that we don't get in the UK. Japanese car enthusiasts living in America usually bemoan the lack of the really interesting models, while us Europeans pretty much have it all.

Things have changed though. The Fast and the Furious movie is given credit for kick starting the tuning and street-racing scene, but it started much earlier, and the movie merely brought it to the rest of the world's attention; including the car manufacturers. Witness the increased availability of official tuning parts in the USA, perhaps even more so than in Europe. The annual SEMA Show (SEMA stands for the Specialty Equipment Market Association) is now brimful of car manufacturer stands along with ever increasing numbers of speciality tuners. The 2004 SEMA show opened yesterday, and one car in particular caught our attention: the Mitsubishi Galant Ralliart Concept.

If I asked you if you'd noticed that the Mitsubishi Galant is no longer on sale in the UK you may ask me when it was, and what it looked like. Some of you may remember the limited edition VR-4, which was a true Q-car: an antithesis to the brash Lancer Evolution. In general, few will mourn the loss of the Galant. It may have been well-engineered, and of high quality for its price, but it lacked style, and perhaps more importantly image.

These ramblings do have a point. At the 2004 SEMA show, Mitsubishi showed the Galant Ralliart Concept, based on the US-market Galant. I don't want to mislead you into thinking that we have been told that it is coming to the UK: we have not. However, we can certainly speculate...

The Galant Ralliart Concept is powered by a high-tech 3.8-litre V6 engine with the MIVEC variable valve timing system. Only 260bhp is quoted for this engine, with other details being kept quiet, as it will actually appear in the US market Eclipse coupe next year. I imagine the powerplant is capable of a lot more, and a four-wheel drive Galant with it fitted would make a serious rival for Audi's quattro models. The concept shown in SEMA has a six-speed manual, and a myriad of tuning parts such as a Ralliart exhaust, a custom cold air intake system, suspension from Road Race Engineering, a rear stabiliser bar, front and rear strut braces, and Brembo's 4-piston brakes up front with and custom cross-drilled discs at the back.

Like the US market, Mitsubishi has changed. Even looking at the UK range reveals a thoroughly modern and fresh selection, with emphasis on sportiness and quality: the Colt looks great and is full of promise, the Lancer Evolution range is just sublime and there are the new Outlander and Grandis MPVs to keep the established Shogun SUV range company. It could well be time to re-establish the Galant in the range.

It may be designed to sell aftermarket tuning parts to US buyers, but we hope that the Galant Ralliart Concept points the way to a future sports saloon for the UK and European markets.

Shane O' Donoghue - 3 Nov 2004